INS Sudarshini sails home to Kochi after 22,000-nautical-mile voyage across four continents
The Indian Navy on Monday (November 2) accorded a ceremonial welcome to INS Sudarshini at Kochi as the sail training ship returned from Lokayan 26, a ten-month transoceanic sailing expedition that took it across more than 22,000 nautical miles of ocean.
The ship was received with a water cannon salute and a ceremonial welcome by the Naval Band. The Flag-in Ceremony was presided over by Vice Admiral Sameer Saxena, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Southern Naval Command.
Lokayan 26 was flagged off from Kochi on January 20, 2026. According to the Navy, the voyage included 17 distinct port calls in 11 countries spanning Asia, Europe, Africa and North America. The deployment featured two transatlantic crossings and extensive sailing passages through widely differing maritime conditions, which the Navy described as offering valuable exposure to the demands of long-distance ocean sailing.
Professional interactions and training exchanges were a central part of the deployment. The Navy said cross-training activities were held with the Royal Moroccan Navy, the Portuguese Navy, the Italian Navy, the Egyptian Navy and the Spanish Navy, and described these engagements as among the major highlights of Lokayan 26.
INS Sudarshini is a sail training ship, and voyages of this kind are used primarily to build seamanship among officers and cadets. Sailing vessels require crews to handle navigation, rigging and watch-keeping with limited reliance on the machinery available on larger warships, which the Navy considers useful preparation for service at sea.
Long-range deployments of this nature also serve a diplomatic purpose. Port calls allow Indian naval ships to interact with host navies and civilian authorities, and the Navy has in recent years positioned such visits as part of its wider effort to maintain maritime links with partner countries across the Indian Ocean region and beyond.
Details of the ship's schedule, the duration of individual port halts and the composition of the crew were not disclosed in the release. It was also not stated whether any cadets were aboard for the full duration of the voyage.
The return to Kochi closes a deployment that covered a substantial part of the ship's operational year. For the Southern Naval Command, which is headquartered in the city and oversees the Navy's training establishment, the Flag-in Ceremony marked the formal conclusion of the expedition.
Lokayan 26 follows earlier editions of the programme, which have used sail training ships to combine instructional sailing with overseas engagement. The Navy's sail training fleet, which also includes INS Tarangini, is used for such deployments alongside its role in training officers in basic seamanship.
